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Key Points
➤ The various categories of rhinosinusitis — acute, chronic, in adults,
in children, endotype, with and without polyps — are all common
diagnoses with population prevalences running as high as 27% for
chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) in some countries in Europe and Canada
but averaging mid-single digit percentages around the world.
➤ There is considerable difference between acute rhinosinusitis,
an infectious flare-up often treated with antibiotics, and chronic
rhinosinusitis, primarily an inflammatory condition treated primarily
with anti-inflammatory drugs.
➤ CRS can have profound effects on functional wellbeing and general
health-related quality of life (QoL). Validated patient reported
outcomes measures reveal a day-to-day sense of well-being that is
worse than congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary
disease and Parkinson's disease.
• Extra-sinus manifestations often drive these QoL scores.
▶ Severe fatigue, bodily pain and poor sleep quality are frequent complaints that
corelate with sinus-specific scores.
▶ Cognitive function also suffers and improves with relief of sinus symptoms.
▶ Depression tracks with sinus symptoms in roughly a third of patients.
➤ The past 5 years have witnessed foundational progress in our
understanding and treatment of rhinologic disease, including
an emphasis on diagnostic algorithms, quality metrics, cost-
effectiveness, and novel therapeutics.
• The novel application of biologic therapies for chronic rhinosinusitis with and
without nasal polyps (CRSwNP) has emerged as perhaps the most informative.
➤ Aided by advances in molecular and statistical techniques, several
research groups have worked toward defining endotypes, or
biological inflammatory subtypes of CRS, based on mucus and
tissue biomarkers. These are proving to have clinically meaningful
implications.
➤ The entire rhinologic community must quickly advance to a
universally agreed upon, well-defined classification based upon
endotypes.
